JP2010538347A - Improved data entry system - Google Patents

Abstract

A computerized device, a first input interface adapted to identify a plurality of different first user input signals, and a first adapted to identify a plurality of second user input signals. Two input interfaces, each of at least one of the first plurality of symbols and the first input signal corresponding to an ambiguity, and of the second plurality of symbols and the second input signal And a processor configured to obscure at least one respective operation. The processor associates one of the first input signals with each of the second plurality of symbols such that the second plurality of symbols corresponds to the plurality of first input signals.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

      The present invention relates to data input devices, particularly to keyboards having a limited number of keys, and to cell phone keypads and the like.

(Cross-reference of related applications)
This application claims the benefit of Patent Literature 1, Patent Literature 2, Patent Literature 3, Patent Literature 4, Patent Literature 5, and Patent Literature 6, all by Firoz Gassasbian under 35 USC 119 (e). All of the above disclosures are incorporated herein in their entirety.

      This application is also related to various conventional PCT publications, including Patent Literature 7, Patent Literature 8, Patent Literature 9, Patent Literature 10, Patent Literature 11, and Patent Literature 12, all of which are disclosed, Incorporated by reference in its entirety and herein.

      The use of computerized devices such as general purpose computers, mobile phones and personal digital assistants (PDAs) requires convenient data entry. While QWERTY keyboards are widely used for general purpose computers such as desktop PCs, portable computers, mainframe terminals, etc., full QWERTY keyboards are generally considered too large for portable devices. . As an example, cell phones typically have a 12-key keypad designed primarily for dialing numbers. In addition to being assigned numbers for data entry into the internal phone book and increasingly for SMS and similar purposes, each key is also assigned multiple alphabetic characters. According to a first known method, to indicate a particular character from the various characters assigned to the key, the user repeatedly presses the key to toggle between the different numbers and characters supported by it. It is necessary to press. This requirement makes text entry slow and cumbersome, mainly via what is a numeric keypad. According to a second well-known method, a computerized device that receives input from a key that is assigned a plurality of characters, and subsequently an ambiguous key, typically depends on context, dictionary database listing, past history, etc. It has been suggested to try to guess the word intended by the user. However, if the computerized device incorrectly guesses, the user needs to reference different input methods in a relatively slow process. Thus, even if the computerized device estimates more than 90% of the input words, the input is slowed down significantly because the remaining words need to be input manually separately.

      U.S. Pat. No. 6,057,836 suggests that the user prompts the user with a list of characters or words to select the correct input.

      The inventor of the present invention suggests that U.S. Pat. No. 6,057,051 uses speech identification to receive supplemental information for user keystrokes, thus allowing for faster correction of false word guesses. . While the combination of fuzzy logic and voice reception and identification device provides an attractive solution, voice identification is not available on many such devices and it requires a lot of memory and processing power This general approach may not be inherently suitable for battery powered portable devices. Use in noisy environments may also be problematic.

      U.S. Patent No. 6,057,836 suggests providing an additional keyboard where each key corresponds to a single character for unambiguous. This approach requires providing a keyboard with a relatively large number of keys and is therefore undesirable on small devices where space is premium.

      As an alternative, a keyboard that provides a smaller set of keys with a multi-tap scheme in which the user suggests the intended character using a different number of taps on the same key may be used for unification. it can. The use of the multi-tap method, however, is slow and inconvenient for many users.

US Provisional Application USSN 60 / 967,285 filed August 31, 2007, USSN 60 / 935,990 filed September 7, 2007, USSN 60 / 993,205 filed on September 10, 2007, USSN 60 / 998,912 filed October 12, 2007, USSN 60 / 999,214 filed October 16, 2007, USSN 61/005567 filed on Dec. 5, 2007 Name “Integrated Keypad System”, PCT Publication WO 01/131788, Name "Function to enhance data input through a small data input unit", WO03 / 007288, Name “System to enhance data entry in mobile and fixed environments”, WO 04/095414, Name “System to enhance data entry in mobile and fixed environments”, WO 05/122401, Name “Data Input System”, WO07 / 114833, PCT application IB2007 / 004481, Will, name “Efficient Input of Words by Unambiguous”, US Pat. No. 6,734,881

      The data entry system of the present invention uses a first set of symbols that includes at least substantially all of the alphabetic characters of at least one language, wherein at least two of the characters are of the first set of keys. At least some of the keys (eg, the first keypad) of the first set of keys (eg, four) are assigned to at least one (eg, the ambiguous key of the first keypad) Characters are assigned in a distributed manner.

      The system also includes a second set of keys (eg, a second keypad), such as a telephone type (ie, primarily numeric) keypad, with an additional set of symbols in at least one language. Including at least substantially all of the alphabetic characters, wherein at least two of the characters are assigned to at least one of the keys of the second set of keys (eg, ambiguous keys of the second keypad) Characters are assigned in a distributed manner to at least some of the keys of the second set of keys. A (for example, predetermined) interaction process, such as a pressing action on either ambiguous key on the keypad, can obscurely correspond to any character in the group of symbols / characters assigned to that key. .

      According to an embodiment of the present invention, at most one (for example, any) key of the character key of the first keypad and (for example, any) key of the character key of the second keypad are at most 1. Characters on the few (eg 4 ambiguous) keys of the first keypad and the second (eg phone type) keys so that they can have two (ambiguous) common characters / characters The characters on the pad can be dispensed.

      In order to enter the exact character / character of the ambiguous key, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, by way of example, the user first presses a key on the first keypad corresponding to the character / character. And then can also press a key on the second keypad that corresponds to the desired character / letter, or vice versa. By taking into account the key press and the fact that there is at most one character common to the two keys, the system selects / enters the desired character / letter exactly.

      With two key presses, the data entry system of the present invention thus provides accurate character identification by means of a unique character common to the two keys that are explicitly selected thereby. Although useful alone, such a system can be used effectively with other technologies that aim for easy text entry with multi-character keys, such as software-based word prediction systems, To predict or confirm the user's intention, ambiguous key selections are compared with words in the database that contain known words and corresponding key press information. The principle of this type of word prediction system is known to those skilled in the art. In this way, a quick and very accurate data / text input system using a reduced keyboard and a few keys each with multiple characters attributed to it can be provided.

      For example, to enter a desired word, according to one method, a user first enters first input information by pressing an ambiguous key on a first keypad corresponding to a character of the desired word. Can be given to. The system can suggest words from the database in response to the first input information. For example, according to one method, the suggested word is the word having the highest priority among the words corresponding to the input information. If the proposed word is not the desired word, the user can continue to be referred to as the correction procedure herein, and one of the characters, generally corresponding to the first character of the desired word. Additional input information is provided by pressing a key on the second keypad. By associating the key presses on the first and second keypads corresponding to the character with the fact that there is at most one character common to both selected keys, the character is chosen accurately and unambiguously, and The system recognizes this character accurately. By considering the combined input information, the system suggests another word from the database corresponding to the combined information. If the new word proposed by the system is not the desired word, until the system selects the desired word, for example, the second keypad key corresponding to the next / more characters (multiple characters) of the desired word By pressing, the user can provide additional input information.

      According to another method, the user presses the ambiguous key on the first keypad corresponding to the remaining characters of the desired word (not unique) by entering the correct character as described above. Thus, at least one character of the desired word can be accurately given first. By accurately recognizing at least one character of a word, and also by considering the ambiguous key presses to correspond to the remaining characters of the word, the system can more accurately predict the desired word And suggest it to the user. If the proposed word is not the desired word, the user can perform additional pressing actions on the keys of the second keypad corresponding to additional characters of the desired word until the system predicts / proposes the desired word. Can be given.

      If the desired word is not in the dictionary, then, in addition to the first input information provided through the first keypad, the second keypad key generally corresponds to all of the characters of the desired word by the user. Press.

      The data entry system and its correction as described above are extremely easy to use systems that allow for quick data entry. Briefly, the user types the desired word using the first keypad. Usually, the system suggests the correct (eg, desired) word. If an undesired word is suggested or no word is suggested, the user begins to retype the word using the second keypad. If the word is in the dictionary database, the system suggests the word almost as soon as it starts to retype the word using the second keypad. If the word is not in the dictionary, the user retypes all the letters of the word. With this kind of system of word prediction data / text input, the user need not be concerned as to whether the word is found or not found in the database (dictionary), but this is the first keypad. Because he knows at some point while typing on, or when retyping using the second keypad, the system provides automatic word completion and suggests the desired word. is there.

      In one aspect of some embodiments of the present invention, a plurality of at least some user input actions are used to resolve ambiguity of data entered through a first set of keys ambiguously associated with a plurality of characters. To use a second reduced set of keys that are ambiguously associated with the characters of. The characters associated with the keys of the first set of keys are optionally arranged so that no key of the first set has a plurality of characters attributed to it common to the second set of keys. Is done. Thus, the activation of two keys, one selected from the first set and the second key selected from the second set, leads to an unambiguous selection of a particular character.

      As an example, to enter the correct character / letter, the user can first press the corresponding key on the first keypad and then press the corresponding key on the second keypad. be able to. It will be appreciated that the order can also be reversed. By taking into account key presses and the fact that there is at most one character (eg, the desired character / letter) common to both keys, the system correctly enters the (desired) character / letter. As previously mentioned, this method of correct character / character input can be used with or without other data input methods such as speech recognition and word prediction.

      Preferably, the supported symbols are numbers from 0 to 9, all alphabets, if not its full set, preferably at least the most common punctuation marks, and possibly for entering or editing text And / or substantially all of the basic symbols, including function keys or commands for interacting with the computer.

      The first and second sets of keys may support the Latin alphabet and / or certain other alphabets such as Hebrew, Arabic, Korean, etc., or at least a portion thereof. In addition, the first and second sets of keys can include additional symbols, such as numbers, punctuation marks, and / or other symbols that conventionally appear on the keyboard. Alternatively, some less frequently used symbols are given using explicit keystrokes, for example using a first set or a second set of keys together with a state selection key (eg shift button) Can be done. In one embodiment of the present invention, one or more of the first or second set of keys can additionally serve as a state selection key, for example when pressed down for longer than a predetermined duration.

      In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, therefore, a computerized device, (i) a first input interface adapted to identify a plurality of different first user input signals, (ii) ) A second input interface adapted to identify a plurality of second user input signals; and (iii) obscuring each of at least one of the first plurality of symbols and the first input signal. An apparatus is provided that includes a processor that is configured to accommodate and ambiguously correspond to the operation of each of at least one of the second plurality of symbols and the second input signal. The processor associates one of the first input signals with each of the second plurality of symbols in a manner such that the second plurality of symbols corresponds to the plurality of first input signals.

      Optionally, the processor corresponds to each of the plurality of symbols and the second input signal. Optionally, the processor corresponds to each of the plurality of symbols and the first input signal. Optionally, the processors together correspond the symbol and the first input signal such that the first input signal is associated with all characters of the natural language alphabet.

      Optionally, the processors both correspond to the symbol and the second input signal such that the second input signal is associated with all characters of the supported alphabet. Optionally, the processor corresponds to a single first input signal and each alphabetic character. Optionally, the processor corresponds to each alphabetic character with a single second input signal. Optionally, the processor is configured to infer a word intended by the user based on the series of first input signals. Preferably, the processor is configured to update the word guess in response to one or more of the second input signals.

      Optionally, the apparatus includes a memory for storing a dictionary of words therein and is configured to use the dictionary when the processor infers the intended word. Optionally, the dictionary includes an indication of the popularity of the words in the dictionary and is configured to use this popularity indicator when the processor guesses and suggests the intended word. Optionally, one of the first input signals and one of the second input signals are implemented by activation of the same (ie, common or mutual) physical key in different processor operating states. Optionally, in at least some embodiments, the processor is configured to add the second input signal at a different position within the currently proposed word range than the first input signal from the same cursor position. Is done.

      Optionally, the processor may differ from the first input signal from the same cursor position when the second input signal is also interpreted to be associated with a symbol corresponding to the first input signal. A second input signal is configured to be added to the word position. Optionally, the processor is configured to associate the second input signal with a first location of the current word that was not associated with the second key in the current processing of the word.

      Optionally, the processor is configured to associate the second input signal with the character immediately preceding the current cursor position managed by the processor. Optionally, the processor has a second input and a character that does not correspond to any of the first input signals when the second input signal is provided rather than during insertion of a word that uses the first input signal. It is configured to associate signals. Optionally, the first and second input interfaces are implemented by a single hardware unit.

      Optionally, the first input interface comprises a physical keypad and / or a touch screen. Optionally, the second input interface comprises a virtual keypad. Optionally, the first input interface comprises a plurality of first keys, the second input interface comprises a plurality of second keys, and if the first key is for example a predetermined duration When interacting in a different way, such as when pressed down long, the processor is associated with at least one of the first keys, such as being a state selection key for one or more of the second keys. Configured. Optionally, when the first key is interacted in a different way, for example when pressed down longer than a predetermined duration, the corresponding symbol of the second key is displayed with the processor selected. Configured to do.

      Optionally, the first input interface comprises a plurality of first keys that do not have their corresponding symbols displayed there. Optionally, the second input interface comprises a plurality of keys having their corresponding symbols presented there. Optionally, for example, when input using a first key is expected, the processor is configured to selectively display a corresponding symbol of the first set of keys on the screen. Optionally, the processor is configured to associate the symbols with the first and second input signals in such a way that each pair of first and second input signals has no more than one common symbol. The

      The word key used in this specification generally refers to a standard interface having pushbutton keys. However, this is only a non-limiting example, and interfaces compatible with the present invention include other user input devices such as touch-sensitive keypads, touchpads, other types of tactile interfaces, etc. Will be understood.

      Optionally, the processor is configured to associate the symbol with the input signal in such a way that each pair of first and second input signals has a common symbol. Optionally, the first input interface supports no more than 6 to 8 different input signals used to insert symbols. Optionally, the second interface supports no more than 12 different input signals.

      Preferably, the first input interface supports no more than 4 different input signals used to insert symbols. Optionally, the second interface supports no more than 10 different input signals.

      In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, there is further provided a method for assigning letters to keys on a keypad, comprising preparing a dictionary that lists words and corresponding popularity of use of words, and keys with fewer letters Providing a keypad comprising: and assigning alphabetic characters to keyboard key actuation actions such that one or more key actuation actions are unambiguously associated with a plurality of characters. The

      This assignment is performed in a way that attempts to improve the probability that a sequence of keystrokes with the first keypad corresponding to a particular word found in the dictionary is associated with that word by the processor that selects the word from the dictionary. Is done.

      Optionally, the step of assigning alphabetic characters to key actuation includes assigning in a manner that assigns characters having similar sounds to different keys.

      In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a computerized device is further configured to represent a plurality of data entry keys and one or more symbols when operated in a first manner. An apparatus is provided that includes a processor configured to associate with at least one of the keys and, when operated in the second manner, as at least one of the keys as a state selection key.

      In order to maximize the use of a minimum number of keys, it is preferred that at least some keys can be used as function keys and as input keys for entering symbols such as letters and numbers etc. . Thus, optionally, if the processor operates for a period shorter than a predetermined time, it is associated with at least one of the keys to represent one or more symbols, and operates longer than a predetermined time. The state selection key is configured to be associated with at least one of the keys. Other methods of providing different inputs via the same key can be supported, such as by double-clicking or by simultaneously depressing a key while simultaneously depressing the shift key of the space key.

      In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, there is further provided a method for managing an input receiving device of a type including a plurality of keys and screens. The method includes receiving user input through a key, determining a state of input in response to a previously activated key, and determining that the device is in a first state on the screen. Displaying at least some symbol assignments of the key, but if the device is determined to be in the second state, not displaying the symbol assignments.

      Optionally, displaying the symbol assignment includes displaying in a manner that is moved by a screen cursor.

      In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, there is further provided an apparatus for receiving an input signal, the first input interface including a plurality of keys associated with a particular alphabetic character, a particular alphabetic character, A second input interface adapted to identify a plurality of associated second user input signals and a first input interface corresponding to each of a group of one or more characters of a particular alphabet. A processor configured to interpret key actions and to interpret a plurality of second user input signals to respectively correspond to a group of one or more characters of a particular alphabet. An apparatus is provided. A second input interface may be located between the keys, i.e. within the keypad edge of the first input interface.

      For example, one keypad can comprise keys arranged along the edge of the display screen, and the remaining keypad can be a touch screen pad within that display screen.

      Optionally, the second input interface comprises a plurality of physical keys.

      Alternatively, the second input interface comprises a plurality of virtual on-screen keys.

      Optionally, the first input interface comprises at most six keys. Optionally, the distance from one of the first keys to the second input interface is greater than the radius of the second input interface.

      For clarity, the term keypad is generally used for a small set of keys, retaining the term keyboard for similar arrangements with QWERTY and a large array of keys. This notation, however, is not strictly adhered to and both terms are used interchangeably and synonymously. Similarly, the terms buttons and keys are used interchangeably to refer to real or virtual (touch screen) areas that can be selected by the user for data entry purposes.

      The present invention will now be described in the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings. Generally, only structures, elements or portions that are closely related to the discussion are shown in the figures.

1 illustrates an example of a data input system according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 shows an example of a data input system according to another embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 4 illustrates a key arrangement according to another embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 6 illustrates a key arrangement according to yet another embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a schematic diagram of a data input device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a data input device according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a data input device according to yet another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a schematic diagram of a data input system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a data input system according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a data input device according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 4 illustrates a key arrangement according to another embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 4 illustrates two optional divisions of keys between two key sets according to another embodiment of the invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an apparatus including a data input system according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a data input device according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 4 illustrates a key arrangement according to another embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a schematic diagram of a data input system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. and, 2 is a flowchart of operation of a data input system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

      FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a first keypad 100 of a combined (eg, predictive) data entry system, according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which English characters are placed on four of its keys 101-104. Assigned. A second keypad, generally an additional set of keys of the system 1010, is also shown, in this example it is a 3x4 key layout, and in a standard way, of that key (1012-1019) It is somewhat similar to a telephone-type keypad with English letters distributed in eight. The first and second keypads can be used to enter (type) text in a quick manner by the user without the need for multi-tap or special key actuation. Without loss of universality, the user enters the desired text using the keys 101, 102, 103, 104 and, if necessary, the backspace button BKSP shown on the left. For each desired character, the user presses the four character keys corresponding to that character without worrying about which character from the multiple characters supported thereby. In some embodiments, the use of the space button SP shown on the right is supported. The processor of the system associated with this interface, ie associated with the first and second keypads, was intended using a dictionary database and generally a simple selection process such as frequency of use, previous use, etc. Guess the word. As long as the processor correctly suggests the intended word, the second keyboard is not used to correct the string of words entered. However, if the processor guesses the wrong word, for example because the word used is not at all in the dictionary database or is used less frequently, the user can actively and accurately identify one or more desired characters. And use the second keypad to correct the input. In order to perform this kind of correction, the user optionally places the cursor at the end of this word generally, but optionally in the middle of the word to be corrected. Note that if a wrong guess is identified while typing the current word, there is no need to move the cursor.

      The user then presses a key from the second set of keys (keypad) corresponding to one correction character at the word position. In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the correction key actuation of the second keypad always corresponds to the first position of the word that has not yet been corrected. Although the second key can correspond to several different characters, and the user need not indicate which of the corresponding characters is intended, the processor will It is possible to limit the possible words so that the likelihood of correctly guessing is very high, using only the letters encompassed by both the first and second keys that act on a particular position . In some embodiments of the present invention, each pair of first and second keys has only one common character so that certain corrected positions in these embodiments have limited characters. Have. As required or required, the user can use the second keyboard to enter several letters of the word or even the entire word. In many cases, however, correction of a single position in a word using the second key is sufficient to allow the processor to infer the intended word and the user can use the first key set. You can immediately continue to move to the next word by pressing the space bar.

      For example, to enter the letter “t”, the user can select the corresponding key 102 from the first keypad 100 that supports the letter “t” (and multiple other letters including the more frequent “a”). Can be pressed first. The system can suggest the letter “a” because this has the highest frequency of use of the character supported by the key 102 and thus the highest probability of being the desired choice. The user, however, can press the key 1018 of the second keypad 1010 corresponding to the desired character “t”. The key 1018 of the second keypad 1010 is also an ambiguous key, however, since it supports it corresponding to three letters, “t”, “u”, and “v”. Characters supported by the second pressed key 1018 (“t”, “u”, and “v”) and the first key 102, ie, “f”, “a”, “r”, “m”, “ By considering the characters supported by "x", "t", the system recognizes that the only character common to both keys 102, 1018 is the character "t", and the system recognizes this character Suggest / enter.

      The above-described system for inputting an accurate character provides other methods of inputting an accurate character and a corresponding word level data / text input and correction system, as described in any of the following PCT publications: In order to replace and / or duplicate, it can be used by the data input / correction system of the present invention with or without word prediction function: US Pat. Patent Document 11 and Patent Document 12, all of which were filed by the inventors of the present invention, and the entire disclosure is incorporated herein in its entirety.

      As an example, FIG. 1 shows an excerpt (or part) 108 from a database of words according to one embodiment of the present invention. According to one method of data entry: Considering the keypads 100 and 1010 to enter the word “fire”, the user can select the corresponding key 102, 104, 102, 101 of the first keypad 100. When pressing (eg, first input information), the system suggests the word “time” because this word has the highest priority among the words in the dictionary database corresponding to the first input information. be able to. In this case, however, this is not the word required by the user. According to one method, the user presses the corresponding key 102 through the character input system just described, in particular corresponding to the letter “f” on the first keypad 100, and in particular the second Press the key 1013 corresponding to the letter “f” on the keypad 1010, and then press the keys 104, 102, 101 of the first keypad 100 corresponding (not unique) to the remaining characters of the word. By pressing, at least one of the word characters / letters (e.g., the letter “f” in this example) can be entered correctly first. The letter “f” is the only letter common to keys 102 and 103, so the system provides / suggests it exactly. By taking into account the exact (first) character of the desired word and the ambiguous key presses corresponding to the remaining characters of the word (eg, the combined input information), the system responds with a dictionary corresponding to the input information. The word “fire” is proposed as having the highest priority among the words. This combination of correctly selected characters and such promising words that include such correctly selected characters thus provides an easy, fast and accurate way of selecting the desired word.

      The above method of providing information leading to the correct selection of a particular character can also be used for correction purposes by the system correction procedure. In accordance with one method of data entry, considering the keypads 100, 1010: To enter the word “fire”, the user can enter an ambiguous data string, also known as first input information herein. The corresponding key 102, 104, 102, 101 on the keypad 100 can be pressed for input. Since this has the highest priority among the words in the dictionary corresponding to the first input information, the system can propose the word “time”. The user can proceed to the correction procedure of the present invention by providing additional information to help the system recognize at least one, for example, the first character of the desired word.

      According to one embodiment, if the proposed word is not the desired word, the user can select a second keypad key (corresponding to at least one of the characters / letters-optionally and preferably its first character) ( Press (Multiple keys). The system can compare the corresponding key pressed when the information was the first input with the key (multiple keys) pressed during the correction procedure, and using the method described above, The system can give the corresponding exact character (s). The system then suggests words by considering the exact character (s). By way of illustration, in the above example, the system suggests the word “time”, however, the user then presses the key 1013 corresponding to the first character “f” of the desired word— “fire”, among others. By considering / comparing the first key 102 pressed during the first input information and the key 1013 pressed during the correction procedure, the system allows a unique character that is common to both of these two keys. Is determined to be the letter “f”. The system therefore recognizes that the desired word begins with the letter “f” and considers the first input information and additional input information so that this word is selected from among the words in the given database of the system. Since it has higher priority, the system suggests the word “fire”. It will be understood that the above method is only presented as an example. Other selection methods for selecting words can be defined and supported in addition or alternatively.

      The above data / text entry and correction method simplifies character entry, and therefore also simplifies the combined data entry system, is easy to remember and requires minimal mental effort. Provide an easy-to-use and intuitive system. As an example, the user can enter each character using two keypads in order to explicitly select and enter each character in the manner described above, thereby entering a character string, eg, a system dictionary database. You can enter words that are not included. However, alternatively, the user can first enter a character string (word) using one input means (first keypad) and then use the second keypad to enter this Look through the columns and make corrections, that is, use the correction procedures described herein. In many cases, this feature is extremely useful because the user may not know in advance whether the word he wants to use is in the dictionary. Using this approach, the user can enter any word without worrying about whether it is supported by the dictionary database 108. He can initially provide first input information (corresponding key presses) through the first keypad 100. If the desired word is not suggested, i.e. does not appear on the screen (e.g. 200, Fig. 2), then he can proceed to the correction procedure of the present invention using the second keypad 1010. The user can first press the key 1013 of the (second) keypad 1010 corresponding to the first character of the desired word (Tue). As described above, the system can recognize the character and, according to one method, propose another word corresponding to the combination of input information. If the proposed word is not yet the desired word, the user can press a key on the second keypad corresponding to the second character of the desired word. The system then suggests another word corresponding to the combined information entered up to this point. If the suggested word is not yet the desired word, the user can repeat this procedure until the system suggests the desired word. If the desired word is not included in the system dictionary, the desired word is provided by sequentially pressing the keys on the second keypad 1010 corresponding to all of the characters of the desired word.

      As an example, considering FIG. 1, if a user wishes to enter the word “mixq”, which is a word that is not listed in the dictionary database, he first enters the keys 102, 104 of the first keypad 100. , 102, 101 can be pressed. The system can propose the word “time” having the highest priority among the words corresponding to the input information. Since this is not the user's desired word, the user can proceed to the correction procedure by pressing the key 1016 of the second keypad 1010 corresponding to the first character “m” of the desired word. The system then determines that the desired word must begin with the letter “m”. By considering the combined input information provided by the user, the system has the word “mute” because this word has the highest priority among the words in the dictionary corresponding to the combined input information. Can be proposed. Since this is not yet the desired word, the user can continue the correction procedure by pressing the key 1014 of the second keypad 1010 corresponding to the second character “i” of the desired word. The system then determines that the second character / character of the desired word is the letter “i”. By considering the combined input information given by the user up to this time, the system has the highest priority among the words of the dictionary corresponding to the combined input information, i.e. the first input information The word “Mime” is proposed as the corresponding and starts with the letters “mi”. Since this is not yet the desired word, the user can continue the correction procedure by pressing the key 1019 of the second keypad 1010 corresponding to the third character “x” of the desired word. The system then determines that the third character of the desired word is the letter “x”. By considering the entire input information provided by the user so far, the system cannot find any corresponding words in the dictionary, but the system starts with the desired word starting with a series of characters “mix” Is determined. If the dictionary contains this kind of word, the system will fail with the remaining characters suggested according to the popularity of the words in the dictionary, and with more frequently used characters if the word is not supported in the dictionary Or, by some other procedure, words starting with these characters can be suggested, for example by the last letter inherited from the original inferred word, possibly by ABC order or without modification. In this example, the system knows that the first three characters are MIX, and because "e" is inherited from the previous proposal "Mime", it can suggest a series of characters "mixe" However, this is not yet the desired word. The user can then press the key 1017 of the second keypad 1010 corresponding to the fourth letter of the desired word that is the letter “q”. By considering all the input information of the combination, the system suggests / inputs the desired word “mixq”, understanding that the last character is the letter “q”.

The above examples can be summarized in the following table:

      In some embodiments of the invention, when the system encounters a user-entered prefix that does not correspond to any word in the dictionary, the system presses a key (eg, from both keypads 1010 and 100). Only characters that are explicitly input are displayed. Alternatively, the system continues to provide guess words that include multiple characters entered using the first keypad, for example, giving each ambiguous character, the most commonly available character, or an ambiguous character Keep as previously displayed.

      The system can support different ways of correction. For example, if the user knows in advance that the word he wants to input is in the dictionary database and the system does not suggest it after entering the first input information, then one method For example, the user can navigate between dictionary words corresponding to the input information provided by the user using a predetermined interaction process such as scrolling or using the system correction keys. However, for example, the user is not sure that the desired word is in the dictionary database, he knows it is not in the dictionary database, or he simply does not like the previous correction method, Or if it is not supported, then he has the option to enter his desired word by typing it twice and first typing it using the keys on the first keypad And then subsequently confirm / correct the selection by retyping at least a portion thereof via the keys of the second keypad.

      It should be noted that according to one method, additional input information provided by the user via the second keypad after the first input information is entered and an undesired word is suggested by the system. , You can change the wrong character and let the system correctly recognize the corresponding character (s) of the word without changing other characters (s) of the proposed word It is. In some embodiments of the present invention, the processor that manages the first keypad 100 learns the corrections that the user performs in common, thus changing the guess word that it gives. For example, if a particular key sequence can be interpreted as word 1 or word 2, and if word 1 is used more commonly than word 2 by the general population, the system will initially begin as a guess for the particular sequence. Word 1 is provided. However, if a particular user is often determined to use word 2 more than word 1 after being given a sequence several times, the system then uses word 2 as the guess word for the particular key sequence. To do.

It is noted that according to another method, the user can enter a word by entering it exactly for each character. For example, to enter a series of characters “mixq”, the user can continuously press the following keys:
102, then 1016 (e.g. give "m")
104, then 1014 (e.g. give "i")
102, then 1019 (e.g. give "x")
101, then 1017 (eg, giving “q”).

      According to one embodiment of the present invention, the keys from the keys of the first keypad and the keys of the second keypad may be, for example, letters, numbers or punctuation marks, at most one Ambiguous characters that are common to both the first and second keypads can include special symbols and / or numbers so that they can have a common character.

      In some embodiments of the present invention, instead of a second keypad key that is interpreted as related to the first character of the current word, the second keypad key is related to the most recent position. Taken. Therefore, at an arbitrary position during the input of the word, the user can input an accurate character of the word at the position. For example, pressing the keys 102, 101, 102, 102 on the keypad 100 can correspond to the words “it” and “text”. If the user wishes to enter the word “text” according to this embodiment, he presses the key 102, 101, 102 on the first keypad and then the key 1019 on the second keypad 1010. (E.g., the system must combine the last key press 1019 and the previous key press 102 to give an accurate character, in this example, between those two keys. It is determined that the only common character is the letter “x”), and finally the key 102 can be pressed. By considering the key press provided using the first keypad and taking into account the exact character (“x”), the system suggests the word “text”.

      It should be noted that although the above description is associated with each key as corresponding to a single group of symbols, in some embodiments a single key is used because space is usually limited in portable devices. Can correspond to more than one group of symbols based on different user actions. For example, the same key can correspond to different groups of symbols for short and long actuations and / or correspond to different groups of symbols for different state selections (eg, pressing or not pressing shift). be able to. Using this type of method, each of the first and second sets of keys may include fewer keys and / or, depending on the user action used, one or more keys may be first and It can be included in both the second set.

      However, it is noted that the use of two different keypads for the first and second set of keys may be easier and less confusing for some users. In another example, the system can have a few keys, the language letters are distributed and assigned to a single press action on the keys, and the same letters are also 1 on the keys. Distributed to different key operations, such as a long press action on a key, so that a character assigned to one single press action and a character assigned to a long press action on the same key have at most one common character Assigned. This embodiment can be beneficial for entering text using a small device that requires fewer keys, for example, having room for only a limited keypad.

      It is also understood that in the above description, for demonstration purposes, a first keypad with four ambiguous keys and a second pushbutton telephone numeric keypad type keypad are used as an example. Obviously, other first and second sets of keys (e.g., each having a different number of keys for assigning substantially all of the language characters to each of the set of keys in the manner described above. That is, the ambiguous key of the first keypad and the ambiguous key of the second keypad can have at most one common character).

      Optionally, the numbers 0-9 available on the telephone keypad can be entered using the data entry system of the present invention. According to one embodiment of the invention, if the current word being entered does not contain a position that is still ambiguous, the activation of a key on the second keypad is a first keypad, such as a number. Is interpreted as relating to unrelated symbols.

      According to another embodiment, if the (single) key press provided by the user through the second keypad cannot be considered by the system to correspond to a word correction, then preferably the key press action is It can correspond to the input of a predetermined symbol such as a number assigned to interaction with a key on the second keypad.

      In addition, a pressing action is provided using the keys of the first keypad, and another generally continuous pressing action is provided on the keys of the second keypad, and the two keys are If they do not have a common character, then a predetermined symbol corresponding to a (for example, continuous) pressing action on the two keys can be given. This may allow several special symbols to be assigned to different (eg, continuous) pressing actions.

      According to one embodiment of the present invention, at any moment during the input of a word by pressing an ambiguous key on the first keypad, the user can select a single // on the corresponding key on the second keypad. Providing a first type of pressing action, such as a simple pressing action, can proceed to the word correction procedure. In this case, according to one method, the system includes a first ambiguous key press provided by the user through the first keypad and corresponding to the user's desired word. It can be predefined to associate. If the user wants to associate the pressing action given on the second keypad to the last ambiguous character of the undesired suggested word, for example, he presses twice on the corresponding key on the second keypad Another type of pressing action, such as an action, can be used.

      As an example, FIG. 2 shows a data entry system of one embodiment of the present invention having a first keypad that includes six keys 201-206 and multidirectional keys 207, four of which are shown in FIG. The keypad 100 has a language character distributed to it, such as duplicating keys 101-104, and the second keypad is a telephone type keypad 2001. By considering the exemplary portion 208 of the system's dictionary database, at the end of the input of key presses 201, 201, 202, 203 (eg, first input information), the system has the highest objective probability of use, The word “her thing” can be proposed as having the highest priority, which can be the highest subjective probability for a particular user or some other criterion.

      In some embodiments of the present invention, if the user presses the key 2015 on the second keypad once, then the system will enter the first ambiguity entered by the user through the first keypad. Can be associated with other characters. In this case, the system associates the pressing action with the first letter of the desired word. Thus, the pressing action on the (numeric) key 2015 and the pressing action on the (cursor control) key 201 have (e.g., can be associated with) one common character that is the letter “l”. Since this has the highest priority among the combined input information, i.e. the first input information and the words corresponding to the information given eg during the correction procedure of the present invention, the system proposes the word "let's" can do. It should be noted that, according to this embodiment, for example, if the first character (several characters) is input correctly, the system will perform a pressing action first after these correctly input characters (several characters). It can be associated with an ambiguous character.

      Thus, in this type of embodiment, words that are not in the dictionary are input to each character exactly for each character and spelled, thereby spelling the corresponding ambiguous key on the first keypad and the second By pressing the corresponding key on the keypad or by pressing the ambiguous key on the first keypad corresponding to (all) that character and then corresponding to (all) that character It can be entered either by pressing the (ambiguous) key of the second keypad.

      In another embodiment of the present invention, when the user gives a predetermined pressing action (key operation), for example, by pressing the key 2015 on the second keypad twice, the system inputs the pressing action by the user. Associated with the last ambiguous character, which is the last pressing action typically given through the first keypad. Therefore, in this example, the pressing action on the key 2015 (twice) and the pressing action on the key 203 have one common character with the letter “k”. The system can suggest the word “leak” as having the highest priority among the words corresponding to the combined input information.

      It should be noted that according to one method, the system can store the exact character (s) or character (s) position within a word so that the user can When interacting with a keypad (eg, pressing a key), the system responds to an ambiguous key press on the first keypad, eg, an inaccurate character given during entry of the first input information. The key press corresponding to the key press is compared with each key press. According to one embodiment, the user selects a predetermined key on a predetermined key that deletes information previously provided by the user, corresponding to a predetermined interaction process, for example, providing an accurate character (s) in a word. Can be used, and only the ambiguous key presses given through the first keypad so that the next time the user continues to input additional input information during the correction procedure can be considered, The first key press provided by the user through the first keypad is associated with this information.

      According to one embodiment of the present invention, the correction procedure for inputting the exact character of the word can correspond to any of the word characters corresponding to the additional input information provided by the user. If the system suggests an undesired word, for example after entering the first input information, for example by pressing a key corresponding to the character of the desired word, then the user is either above or several different Additional information corresponding to at least one of the desired word characters can be provided as described in the method. The system can take into account additional information due to any of the ambiguous characters associated with the word corresponding to the leading input information (eg key press), and corresponds to the combined information (eg preferably a dictionary) Propose the word with the highest priority among the words within. If the proposed word is not the desired word, the user can press on a given key, such as a “scroll / correct” key that scrolls between possible words corresponding to the combined information, Or he could possibly give additional information corresponding to the additional characters of the word as described above.

By way of example, considering FIG. 2 and its dictionary database portion 208, and using the data entry system of the current embodiment, this word is at the end of the entry of key presses 201, 201, 202, 203. Having the higher priority, the system can suggest the word “hers”. At this time, the user can proceed to the correction procedure, for example, by pressing the key 2015 on the second keypad. According to this method, the system determines that the word requested by the user can have one of the characters “jkl” in any location within the desired word range. By considering the key 201 and key 2015, the system allows the user to press the key 2015 when it is intended for either the first and / or second letter of the desired word. l ”(eg, the letter“ l ”is the only common character between the keys 201 and 2015). The first keypad key 202 has no common character with the second keypad key 2015, and thus the third character of the desired word is not any of the characters “jkl”. Finally, the first keypad key 203 and the second keypad key 2015 share a common character “k”. This means that the user's pressing action on the key 2015 is intended to set the last character of the desired word as the character “k”. Word (eg excerpt):
"Beak protrusion"
"Leak leak"
"Leas grassland"
“Let's let”
Corresponds to the combined information. The system can suggest “let to let” words with the highest priority from the available words. If this is not the desired word, then the user may, for example, press the correction / scroll / next key to suggest the next word among the corresponding words available according to one method. Or, according to another method, he can enter additional input by pressing another key on the second keypad as described above.

Example:
-If the user presses the key 2015 again, the system suggests the word “leak leak” in which two of the characters (eg “l, k”) correspond to the two pressing actions on the key 2015, Can correspond to the combined information, according to one method, the system can suggest words with the highest priority among them), or
-When the user presses the key 2017, the system looks for a word in the above excerpt where one of the letters corresponds to the key 2015 and another letter of the word corresponds to the key 2017. Can do. There are two such words, “let's let” and “leas grassland”. Since the word “let's let” has already been proposed to the user, the system can therefore propose the word “leas grassland”. It should be noted that the exemplary method of searching for words based on input information (combined) provided by the user is only an exemplary method. Other search strategies based on the user's (combined) input information can be substituted or additionally considered. As is known, various suitable search schemes can be used.

      It is noted that the example shown above is provided to demonstrate the principle of the data input system according to the present invention. Other examples can be considered by those skilled in the art.

      As mentioned above, in addition to correcting the proposed undesirable word, the second keypad can also be used to enter other symbols, such as special symbols and numbers and functions, thus The system can provide a full range of keys and functions provided by a full PC keyboard. According to one embodiment, means such as one or more mode keys can be used to switch the system to another symbol input mode, while according to another embodiment of the present invention, the user's To simplify the interaction process, at least in some cases, some predetermined rules are considered for that purpose so that the system automatically enters other symbol input modes / procedures. Can do.

According to one method, after pressing a key on the first keypad, if the next key press is given through the second keypad, the system then knows if they provide a common character. Compare pressed keys:
-If they have a common character, the system can proceed to the correction procedure of the described embodiment of the invention and propose a new word.
o If the correction procedure is not what the user wants to do, according to one method, he presses a predetermined key, eg a “backspace” key, or by some other means Can tell the system that it is. The system can go back one step and display the previous word, and then display a special symbol corresponding to the pressing action given through the second keypad. In this case, for example, if the pressing action provided by the user on the second keypad is a single pressing action, the system can propose a number that is assigned to a key on the second keypad. Also, for example, if the pressing action given by the user is another type of interactive process, such as a double pressing action, perhaps a “slide” action, the key is a virtual key on a touch-sensitive surface, such as on a touch screen If so, then the system can propose a function that is assigned to a predetermined interaction with a special symbol such as a punctuation symbol or a “key” on the second keypad.
-Alternatively, if the two keys of the two keypads do not share a common character, the user can continue to input the corresponding special symbol (s). The placement / assignment of special symbols on / to the keys of the second keypad is described in further detail below.

      If the user presses a key on the second keypad and the previous key press is not related to a word input or a suggested character / word correction, the system responds like a number assigned to the key You can proceed to enter a special symbol.

      One of the keys of the second keypad in addition to or in place of the special symbol placement / assignment to the keys of the first keypad, as explained in the different patent applications already filed by the applicant Different way of special symbol placement / assignment for / to the above predetermined interaction can be considered. FIG. 3 shows an exemplary second keypad 300 (specifically, an alphanumeric telephone type numeric keypad keypad in this example of the invention), where a single pressing action on the key is the upper right side of the key. (For example, the character “1” 305 on the key 301), and the character that is pressed twice on the key is shown on the lower right side of the key. (For example, the character “+” 306 on the key 301). As an alternative only, FIG. 3a shows an exemplary (eg, the same) second keypad 310 (eg, the same telephone type keypad) of the present invention, pressing the shift key 312 (eg, and holding) and on the key. A single pressing action can correspond to a predetermined character such as the character shown on the upper right side of the key (for example, the character “(”) on the key 311 and the second pressing on the key The action can correspond to another predetermined character, such as the character shown on the lower right side of the key (eg, the character “<” on the key 311 for example).

As described above, the first and second keypads can be assigned virtually any number of keys, any key configuration, any type of language symbol / character to each of the first and second keypads. (Eg distribution) can have:
Any of the (ambiguous) keys of the first keypad and any of the (ambiguous) keys of the second keypad have at most one common (eg similar) character and:
-Preferably, the assignment of characters (eg letters) to the (eg 4) ambiguous keys of the first keypad is based on key presses corresponding to said words that the system is given only through the first keypad. It is like maximizing the possibility of proposing the user's desired word. Preferably, the system further uses a different type of interaction with the keys, etc. to allow for a complete duplication of the PC keyboard in the easiest way.

      As described above, the first and second keypads may be any number of keys, any key configuration, any type of assignment of language symbols / characters to each of the first and second keypads (eg, distribution). ). Optionally, the characters are arranged such that each pair of keys of the first keypad and keys of the second keypad has at most one common character. Alternatively, two or more with one or more pairs of first and second keys having a very low compatibility rate so that the system guesses which one is intended in almost all cases Can have a common character. For example, in one embodiment, the character “? ] And "q" are "? ”Is normally placed at the end of a word and“ q ”is not normally used at the end of a word, so it can be placed on the same first and second keys. Alternatively, when additional methods of resolving ambiguity, such as voice recognition and / or lip or facial motion identification, are provided to the user, one or more pairs of the first and second keys. Can have two or more common characters.

      In some embodiments of the present invention, letters are assigned to keys in a manner that maximizes the likelihood that the system will guess the intended word as soon as possible. For example, the second keypad can be arranged using a well-known arrangement on the telephone device in alphabetical order. The first keypad then does not include characters on the same key of the first keypad that replacing one of many words with another would result in another valid word Placed in.

      As a specific example, d and s are both common word ends at the end of many words, such as “saved saved” and “save saved”, and therefore preferably are not on the same key. .

      In a similar manner, two or more of the vowels a, e, i and o are preferably not included on the same key. In some embodiments of the invention, different key arrangements of the first keypad are used for different languages within the same device, or on different devices sold in different countries. Instead, for standardization across platforms and countries, a single letter placement for all languages that use a common alphabet, even if word prediction in some languages results in a slight degradation May be preferred.

The first keypad arrangement preferably avoids placing two characters from the same second key on a single key of the first keypad. Optionally, a simulation is performed using the dictionary with frequency and multiple different key arrangements to select an arrangement that achieves the highest percentage of first guesses of the desired word.
Additional input method

      In some embodiments of the invention, in addition to using two keyboards with ambiguous keypads, the system allows data entry through additional means, such as voice recognition. For example, after pressing keys corresponding to a plurality of characters vaguely, the user can say the name of the desired character and / or the sound of the desired character. In a further example, after pressing a series of characters corresponding to a desired word, the user can say that word to help the system select the intended word. Other methods can be used, such as the method described in US Pat. No. 5,836,831, which uses voice to determine the user's intention when pressing an ambiguous key.

      Optionally, in these embodiments, in addition to the considerations described above for assigning characters / characters to (eg, four) keys of a first keypad, assigning characters to said keys of a first keypad May be such that characters / characters with vaguely similar speech characteristics are assigned to different keys of the first keypad.

      Depending on the device or environment, the key configuration may be different. FIG. 4 shows, as an example, a mobile device used in a landscape position. The keypad 100 of FIG. 1 (eg, in this example, the first keypad includes two additional keys as shown in different patent applications filed by the inventor) or the keypad 600 of FIG. The first keypad of the present invention to be duplicated can be divided into two parts 401, 402 on both sides of the device. Also, the second keypad (in this example a telephone type keypad) can also be divided into (two) parts 407, 408 on both sides of the device. The key division of the keypad (multiple keypads) of the present invention is as in any of the embodiments of Patent Document 7, Patent Document 8, Patent Document 9, Patent Document 10, Patent Document 11, and Patent Document 12. Can be carried out according to any method known in the art. In one example, a telephone type keypad is rotated 90 degrees and then split to keep its original shape.

As mentioned above, at least one of the keypads may be an on-screen keypad to allow it to have fewer hard keys and to design a different on-screen key arrangement. FIG. 4a shows the second keypad 417, 418 of FIG. 4 having an on-screen form factor.
Keypad layout

      As mentioned earlier, instead of two different keypads, the system can use two different types of interaction with one keypad that duplicates the two keypads. FIG. 5 shows a keypad 500 of the present invention having twelve keys as an example. In this example, eight of the keys (eg, the darker keys) can duplicate the first keypad of the present invention, and four of the keys are assigned language characters in the manner described above. . In this example, the 12 keys can also replicate the character assignments of the key and telephone type keypad (eg, the second keypad). Means such as pressing a predetermined key can cause the system to switch between the two modes / keypads. For example, to enter a word, the user can use (e.g., press) a key (e.g., a darker key) on a first keypad and by pressing the "Mode" key 507, The system can switch to a second keypad (eg, 12-key phone type keypad mode in this example) mode and proceed to other tasks such as correcting a word or entering a special symbol . Another pressing action on the “mode” key can put the system into the first keypad mode. It is understood that instead of pressing and releasing the mode key to switch from the first keypad / mode to the second keypad / mode, the system releases the first key when the user releases the mode key. The switch from the first keypad / mode to the second keypad / mode can occur by pressing and holding operation on the key so as to return to the keypad / mode. is there. In this case, pressing the keypad key while holding down the mode key can correspond to pressing the key on the second keypad (or vice versa).

It should be noted that in different patent applications filed by this inventor, after suggesting words by the predictive data input system of the present invention, means such as correction means or next / scroll keys are provided by the user ( For the same purpose, although mentioned / described to scroll within the word range corresponding to the information (combined) (eg corresponding to a key press given by the user and starting with the same character) Other methods (eg, correction procedures) can be considered. For example, according to one method, after the system proposes a word (based on user input information), if the proposed word begins with the same character as the desired word, the user inputs corresponding to the same starting character And the system responds to user input information provided during input (and correction procedures), and the next / different word that begins with the same letter as the previously proposed word by the system Can be proposed. If the user repeats the procedure, the system can suggest another next corresponding word as described above, etc. For example, by considering FIG. 2, at the end of the key press input on 201, 201, 202, 203, the system can suggest the word “her” with the highest priority.
If the user speaks the name of the letter “h” (eg, says) (eg, presses the key 2014 on the second keypad, or presses the “h” key on a full PC keyboard, etc.) Can suggest the next word that corresponds to the user's input information and starts with the same letter as the last word. In this example, the system can suggest the word “hero”.
According to another example, if the user wishes to enter the word “leak” after the system has proposed the word “her”, he can first say the letter “l” (eg, Or, the key 2015 on the second keypad can be pressed, or the “l” key on the full PC keyboard can be pressed, etc.). The system can suggest the word “let's let”. The user can say the letter “l” again (eg, can press the key 2015 on the second keypad, can press the “l” key on a full PC keyboard, etc.) ). The system proposes the word “leas grassland”. The user can say the letter “l” again (eg, can press the key 2015 on the second keypad, can press the “l” key on a full PC keyboard, etc.) ). At this time, the system can propose the desired word “leak”.

      The data entry system of the present invention, which uses two ambiguous sets of keys (eg, two keypads), for each of the keypads (at least some of the keys), One set of at least the same language alphabet letters is assigned in a distributed manner, so that the keys of the second keypad have at most one common character / letter, which has many effects. Through this system, the user can easily and naturally enter words that are in the dictionary and not in the dictionary (as described above). For example, during a meeting, the user can take notes using only the first keypad. After the meeting, the user can correct the word by displaying the document, looking through it and indicating the word to be changed (eg, positioning the cursor at the end), and pressing the second keypad Can be used to proceed to the correction procedure. Considering undesired words, therefore, a first key press (e.g. first input information) given the undesired word (e.g. or series of characters) and a key press given by the user through a second keypad ( By considering (multiple press), the system can suggest the desired word correspondingly / in response.

      It is understood that in addition to the first and second keypads, the system can have / use other keys such as arrow keys or mouse keys, etc. The system can also include word-finished software. The second keypad is also a second / addition to allow entry of more characters or parts of words as described in different patent applications filed by this inventor. Shift key can be included.

      According to one embodiment, during the correction procedure, the input information provided by the user can be predefined to correspond to the last character of the desired word, and thus the scrolling system through the word Note that it can be based on the last character of.

As noted above, at least in some embodiments of the present invention, at any instant during word entry (or correction procedure), the user can perform a single / simple on the corresponding key of the second keypad. Providing a predetermined type of pressing action, such as a pressing action, can proceed to correcting the word / sequence of characters suggested to the user (until then). Also, as noted above, according to one embodiment, the system is pre-defined to associate the key press action with the first ambiguous character (eg, or series of characters) of the word suggested by the system. Can do. After this, some examples:
-Optionally, according to one method, if the initial character (s) of the proposed word are entered quickly and accurately, the system can detect the exact character (s) in the proposed word. The character can be associated with the pressing action on the key of the second keypad to the first ambiguous character position (corresponding to the key of the first keypad) (for example, it has been proposed Associated with the first ambiguous character of the word). Obviously, the ambiguous character can be located between two exact characters of the proposed word. The next such predetermined type of pressing action on the second keypad is predefined to correspond to the next ambiguous character (corresponding to the first keypad key) of the proposed word. Can.
-Optionally, according to another method, the pressing action through the second keypad is associated with a correction procedure, for example related to / in the proposed word, such as in any of the following situations: If it cannot be interpreted by the system:
o If no ambiguous character is in the (proposed) word o The pressed key of the second keypad corresponds to the first ambiguous character of the proposed word O End-of-word signal that does not have a character in common with the key o After a special symbol / function (eg the cursor is located) (eg punctuation, space, etc.)
o No suggested word to correct o Top of word o Others,
At that time, the system preferably inputs a predetermined special symbol / function that is also assigned to the pressing action on the key of the second keypad and to the pressing action on the corresponding key of the second keypad. (For example, the assignment of special symbols to the keys of the second keypad has already been described in detail earlier and will be described further through examples later in this application).
Example:
o If the pressing action on the key of the second keypad is a single pressing action on the key, then it will input the number assigned to the key, as previously described and shown; Can be associated.
o If the pressing action on the key of the second keypad is a double pressing action on the key, then it will enter another special symbol assigned to the key, as previously described and shown Can be associated with
o Note that as an example, the pressing action on the key of the second keypad presses the shift key to give a pressing action once or twice on the key of the second keypad. If it is a predetermined pressing action, then, in a predetermined manner, the pressing action is not associated with the correction procedure of the present invention, so that the key pressing action, as described and shown through the representative drawings, has a corresponding special symbol / It can be associated with entering a function.
-As with the correction procedure (proposed word) of the present invention, the pressing action on the key of the second keypad can be interpreted by the system, but the user corrects the proposed word. If it is not intended (eg the proposed word is the desired word, but the user wants to enter eg a special symbol at the end of the proposed word), then according to one predetermined method: After the system proposes a new word based on the pressing action on the key of the second keypad, the user can give a predetermined pressing action on the predetermined key (eg, pressing the “backspace” key) And the system preferably inputs the pressing action on the second keypad in a predetermined manner and also a special symbol assigned to the pressing action on the key of the second keypad. In this case, the system can reprint (eg, return to) a previously proposed word and provide a corresponding special symbol (eg, at the end of the word). it can.

      Obviously, for the same purpose, according to another method, before giving the key press action through the second keypad, the user accepts the proposed word and the next press on the key An end-of-word signal such as a predetermined pressing action on a predetermined key can be provided to inform the system that the action is not related to entering / correcting the proposed word (to an additional character). The user can then give the pressing action through a second keypad and the system gives the corresponding special symbol.

      In the above description, the pressing action through the second keypad is described as being associated with the first ambiguous character of the current word. In another embodiment, the second keypad key press action is associated with the most recently entered character of the current word, and the next action of the second keypad key until the beginning of the word is reached. Continuously associates with the previous character of the word. In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the activation of a key on the second keypad is considered to be selectively associated with any of the (eg, ambiguous) positions of the current word, and the processor Use this constraint when choosing whether guess words are displayed.

      As described above, preferably, a predetermined pressing action related to correcting the word, typically by entering the letters / characters of the word and / or on the first and second keypads, is on the key. Although it is a single press action, and as noted above, it should be noted that another predetermined action on the key of the second keypad such as a double press action on the key. A type of interaction can correspond to correcting the last ambiguous character of the proposed word, etc. (reversing the order of characters considered in the correction procedure from the last to the first ambiguous character) ).

      In addition, as explained in the different patent applications filed by this inventor, the system can have a predetermined function key, for example the next / correction key, one / each pressing action of said key (for example Alone can give the next word in the system's word dictionary, corresponding to input information (eg, ambiguous key presses and exact characters, if any) provided (combined) by the user . This matter has already been detailed.

As noted above, the ambiguous character assigned to a key (eg, a predetermined interaction with a first keypad and, apparently, a second keypad) may have a special symbol (s). Can be included. The symbol (s) can be included in (part of) some of the words in the dictionary database of the system and can be predicted by the data entry system of the present invention. For example, FIG. 6 shows the first and second keypads of the present invention by way of example, the key 603 of the first keypad 600 includes the special symbol “′”, and the key 604 includes the character “-”. . The same special symbols are assigned to the second keypad keys 6013 and 6012, respectively. The assignment of ambiguous characters, including letters and special symbols, to the (ambiguous) keys of the first and second keypads is such that the ambiguous key of the first keypad and the ambiguous key of the second keypad are: A few (for example, four in this example) ambiguous keys on the first keypad and a second (for example, this) to be able to have at most one common character In the example, telephone type) is performed in such a way that the combined (ambiguous) characters on the keypad are distributed on each of the keypads. For example, if the user wishes to enter the word “it's that” (eg, it is not included in the dictionary of words in the system in this example), the user may press keys 604, 602, 603, 603. it can. The system can suggest the word “day” having the highest priority among the words corresponding to the input (eg, key press) information. The user can then press keys 6014, 6018, 6013, 6017 corresponding to the desired character of the desired word (eg, “i, t, ', s”) through the second keypad.
The first key pressed through the first keypad and the first key pressed through the second keypad have one common character, “i”;
The second key pressed through the first keypad and the second key pressed through the second keypad have one common character, “t”;
The third key pressed through the first keypad and the third key pressed through the second keypad have one common character, "'"
The fourth / last key pressed through the first keypad and the fourth key pressed through the second keypad have one common character, “s”, so the system is a series Gives the character / word "it's that". Clearly, the system can add the word to its dictionary of words so that the next time it can be predicted through the system's word prediction method.

      In some embodiments of the present invention, however, the apostrophe ("'") is only included within a set of special symbols and is not provided with the first and / or second ambiguous keystrokes. In order to add an apostrophe in the middle of a word, the user must optionally use a state selection key activation and a key corresponding to the apostrophe in a special state. The system then only suggests guess words with an apostrophe at the desired location. If a word with an apostrophe is not in the dictionary, the user optionally has to enter each of the remaining characters of the word using both the first and second set of keys. In some embodiments of the invention, the system can then add this word to the dictionary for future use.

      To enter a dictionary word containing special symbols as an example, FIG. 6a shows an apparatus 6200 according to another embodiment of the present invention. Device 6200 includes a first keypad / keyboard that is divided into two parts for convenience, one located on one side of the device, eg, the right, and the second part on the opposite side, eg, the left side. In this example, the second keypad / keyboard is a phone type on-screen keypad 6209. The second keyboard in this embodiment is located between the two parts of the first keyboard. The arrangement of the first keyboard on the periphery of the device 6200 allows easy access by both hands of the user, each hand accessing one part of the keyboard. Optionally, the split keyboard is a keyboard used primarily by the user for text insertion, while a second keyboard located between parts of the first keyboard is for correction and / or less Less frequently used because of special symbols that are not often used. It should be noted that when the second keyboard is between the parts of the first keyboard, the second keyboard is exactly along the line connecting the two parts of the first keyboard. Rather, it need not be present, but rather this type of connection can be kept away (eg, above or below).

      Optionally, the first keypad has six keys 6201-6206 representative of the character and function arrangements schematically illustrated by boxes 6241-6246 of arrangement 6240. As shown, the keys 6201-6206 do not have the characters they correspond to be imprinted on them, since the user's finger normally prevents this type of imprinting view on the keys. In some embodiments of the present invention, the processor of the device 6200 displays a key arrangement 6240 on its screen and / or the key arrangement is permanently imprinted on the device body, eg, its frame.

      In addition to the ambiguous characters, the embodiment of FIG. 6A also illustrates a first keypad key 6243 that (ambiguously) includes the character “′” (eg, an apostrophe). If the user wishes to enter the word “it's that” by considering the exemplary dictionary portion 6228 of the system word, he corresponds to the corresponding key 6244, 6242, 6243 on the first keypad. , 6243 can be pressed. By considering the key press given by the user, the system can propose the word “it's that” with the highest priority among the dictionary words corresponding to the key press action. If the system does not guess the word correctly, the user can use the second keypad 6209 to suggest the desired word and can use the key 6213 to suggest the apostrophe. Additional symbols can be added to other keys by those skilled in the art.

      As mentioned above, the user can write the text and then look through the words in the text later, and he picks it up by pointing / pointing to the undesired suggested word You can proceed to correct / change. (Accordingly) according to one embodiment of the present invention, the system can have browsing means for navigating back and forth in the text for easier user operation, and word level criteria (e.g., first Alternatively, a pressing action on the second predetermined key (eg, or a first or second predetermined pressing action on the key) can be located at the end of the next word or the previous word, respectively.

      The first and second keypads, as it was previously described, have the same principle as the word prediction data input and the first keypad key and the second keypad key at most one As long as it corresponds to the correction system of the present invention that uses two ambiguous sets of keys (e.g., two keypads), such as having two characters / characters, characters / characters to at least some of those keys It can have any arrangement of assignments. For example, the language characters can be assigned to QWERTY or alphabetical order, etc. to a few (eg 4) keys of the first keypad and correspond to the mentioned principle, and for example higher by the system Language characters can be assigned / distributed on the keys of the second keypad in a manner that allows word guessing rates.

      It should be noted that in the different paragraphs of this patent application for easier description, the correction system of the present invention that uses the principle of word prediction data entry and two ambiguous sets of keys (eg two keys) A pad, eg, a first set of input signals and a second set of input signals), wherein the ambiguous key of the first keypad and the ambiguous key of the second keypad are at most one common character / character. Obviously, one of the predetermined pressing actions corresponding to any (ambiguous) character of the key of the first keypad and any of the keys of the second keypad ( The language characters / characters are each of the first and second keypads so that the predetermined pressing action corresponding to the ambiguous character has at most one common character / character. Can be assigned to a predetermined pressing action on over, is that. This principle can be applied to those paragraphs.

      It should be noted that the present invention allows the system to input the exact character (s) of the word (eg, provides information for) during the data entry correction of the present invention. This means that any additional type of input means with the system keypad can be used using a few keys (eg, the first keypad of the above embodiment). These matters are detailed in the corresponding application. For example, in addition to or in place of the second keypad of the present invention for entering an accurate character (multiple characters), an accurate character as described in a different patent application filed by the inventor. Other means for input) can be used. The means may include any type of keyboard (eg coding keyboard, half-QWERTY, Fitally, reduced keyboard (eg Fastap keypad, eg at least some of its numeric keys according to one method) As described, the ambiguous (eg, first) keypad of the present invention can be duplicated, and that character key can be used to enter the correct character), telephone type key Predefined interaction procedures provided by a pad (eg, using multi-tap, etc.) and a keyboard / keypad for accurate single character input. Another input means may be the user's voice, as described by the inventor in different patent applications.

      Obviously, instead of or in addition to integrating the system (eg keys) in the (movable / fixed) device, an external keypad connected to the device (eg wirelessly or wired) Can be considered. For example, a portion of the system (eg, a software portion) can be installed in a laptop / desktop computer, and a keypad having two (eg, a predetermined) set of keys connected to the computer It can be used from a distance by a system for entering it / data through the system. This allows the user to interact comfortably with the computer from a distance.

      Also, as described above, the first and / or second keypad of the present invention can have on-screen keys. FIG. 7 shows a second keypad (eg, telephone type keypad in this example) having split on-screen keys 707,708.

      The (predictive) data entry system of the present invention, using the first and second keypads as described above, allows for almost any mobile device (eg, current cell phone form factor) even with a low power processor and limited memory. System integration). This version of the system and other versions of the system (e.g., as described in detail in different earlier patent applications already filed by the inventor (e.g., as described in this patent application, the second Instead of or in addition to using the keypad of the present invention, the use of the first keypad of the present invention may include other means such as a full-size keyboard and / or user voice, etc. to enter the correct character. Provides a complete solution to the (mobile) industry basics of how to enter text easily and quickly in a mobile environment by duplicating the functionality of a full-size computer keyboard) Also, it is important to note that previous patent applications filed by this inventor As described, the voice provided by the user can be detected by the system based on, for example, the user's voice or the movement of the user's lips (eg, and ultimately also the face), That's what it means.

      The data entry system of the present invention that uses first and second sets of keys (eg, each set having ambiguous keys as described in this patent application) has significant advantages. For example, the system can be integrated into any existing device, such as a mobile phone, or used as an external data input unit for any device such as a PC. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, a portion of the system (eg, software portion, not shown) can be installed in a laptop / desktop computer and two (eg, predetermined) connected to the computer A keypad 800 (eg, external) having a set of keys 808, 809 can be used remotely by a system for entering data into the computer. The key may be hardwired to the computer, for example using a USB interface, or wireless, for example using the Bluetooth protocol. As a result, the user can interact with the computer comfortably. For example, one (existing) numeric type keypad key may have two sets of keys 808 such that each set defines / duplicates one of the keys of the set and interacts with the system. 809 can be divided in a predetermined manner. FIG. 8a shows two sets of keys on each of the keypads 811, 812, with the darker keys defining the first set of keys and the brighter keys defining the second set of keys. Figure 2 shows two other types of division of the key.

      It will be appreciated that the external keypad / data entry unit described above can be connected to a corresponding device such as a PC5TV, etc. by wire or wirelessly. The external data input unit may have other functions such as a mouse (eg, can be placed behind the unit), a microphone (eg, if the system further uses a speech recognition system), etc. Either can be included. It also allows the user to interact with the corresponding device from a distance so that the user can see data / text entered (eg, and transmitted from the corresponding device). Can have its own display unit for displaying data / text entered by the user. Examples of this type of data input unit are detailed in previous patent applications filed by this inventor. The text preferably displayed on the screen of the data input unit can be displayed (simultaneously) on the screen of the corresponding device. The external data input unit can also have its own other functions, such as its own processor and memory, so that the software part of the system is also integrated within the data input unit. Input data / text independently of other devices and (for example later) preferably connect the external data input unit to a corresponding device to transfer the input data / text to the device It can be so.

      They are described herein, for example, where any ambiguous key on the first keypad and any ambiguous key on the second keypad have at most one common character / character. As long as the character distribution principle is followed, the arrangement / distribution of characters on a few keys of the first and second set of keys (keypads) can vary considerably. The distribution of another type of English character on the four keys 801-804 of the first keypad 808 is shown in FIG. 8 as an example.

      The first and second keypads can use at least one common key. For example, as shown in FIG. 9, a first keypad having keys 901-906 uses keys 9011 and / or 9012 of second keypad 900 as a “shift / mode” key for the first keypad. can do. The shift key (multiple keys) can also be used with a second keypad. For example, when a user presses (and holds) the shift key and presses a key on the first keypad, a corresponding symbol on the first keypad can be input, and the user can input the shift key By pressing (and holding) and pressing a key on the second keypad, the corresponding symbol on the second keypad can be entered / associated.

      As noted above, instead of two different keypads, the system can be configured to duplicate two keypads with two different types of interaction with one keypad (eg, short / long, shifted and Can be used). This was previously described and was previously shown in FIG. FIG. 10 shows the keypad 1000 with a kind of arrangement / assignment of symbols on each of the keypads. In this example, the eight lighter keys define the first keypad and the total 12 keys define the second keypad. There are two types of mode keys as examples. The system can be in the first keypad mode by default. Pressing a brighter key means that it can correspond to the first keypad by default. Also, for example, pressing the mode 1 key can put the system into the second keypad mode. In this case, pressing any of the 12 keys can correspond to the second keypad. Another pressing action on the mode 1 key can switch back to the first keypad mode and switch the system. Further, for example, pressing and holding the mode 1 key and pressing any one of the 12 keys can correspond to pressing the key (pressing operation) on the key of the second keypad. . Also, for example, pressing the mode 2 key can duplicate the mode key of the second keypad, or can be used in a predetermined manner as an additional mode key corresponding to the second keypad, etc. It can be so. It is understood that examples of mode keys and their use here are shown only for demonstration purposes. Other types of means for switching between the two keypads can be considered by those skilled in the art.

      As described in this patent application, two different types of interaction with one keypad 1100 (eg, telephone type keypad) that duplicates two (eg, ambiguous) keypads of the present invention. Another example of using a process (eg, a first predetermined interaction with a keypad key represents / duplicates pressing a key of the first keypad of the present invention, and a second Type of interaction (e.g., double pressing with the key / long pressing with the key / pressing (e.g., holding) the first (mode) key and pressing the key, etc.) Representing / duplicating interacting with a key of the second keypad of the present invention and assigning the first type of interaction with the key to the character / character and the second of the key Type of interaction A character / letter assigned to have one common character at most) is shown in Figure 11. According to this example, a first type of interaction process, such as a single press on the keypad key, is a book that includes ambiguous keys 1104, 1106, 1107, 1109 (eg, four in this example). The / corresponding to interacting with the first keypad of the invention can be duplicated. Each distributed / assigned character corresponding to the interaction with the key is shown at the top of the key. Also, other symbols / functions assigned to the interaction with the keypad (eg, a single press operation) are shown above the corresponding keys (eg, backspace “Bk” function on key 1101, key Return “Rt” function on 1105, space “Sp” function / character on key 1108, etc.).

      In this example, another type of interaction with a key on keypad 1100 may be predefined to correspond to / reproduce to interact with (at least a character) key on a telephone type keypad. . Thus, in this example, several mode keys are provided, eg: “lttr” on key 1101, “num” on key 11010, and “punc” on key “11012”. For example, pressing (eg, holding) key 1101 can put the system into a second keypad mode. In this case, for example, giving a single press action on any of the keys 1102-1109 may be an ambiguous character shown below the key (for example, a character distributed in a standard telephone type manner on the key az), and thus this interaction can be used during the correction procedure of the present invention as described at the beginning of this patent application. Thus, for example, pressing (eg, holding) the key 11010 can put the system into the “number” mode of the second keypad mode. In this case, for example, giving a pressing action once on any of the keys 11011, 1101-1109 can correspond to the numbers 0-9, respectively. Correspondingly, for example, pressing (eg, holding) key 11012 can put the system into the “punc” mode of the second keypad mode. In this case, for example, giving a single press action of a keypad key can correspond to a predetermined punctuation symbol / command assigned to this type of interaction on the corresponding key, said symbol being a key Not shown on pad 1100). With the example just shown, the data entry system of the present invention using a set of keys with different types of interaction could be implemented in a telephone type keypad.

According to another example, FIG. 12 uses a mode key 12010 to allow another phone type keypad 1200 to correspond to (eg, the (ambiguous) character of the desired word (eg, first input information) (at least A) duplicating the first keypad (to provide a key press action) and the data entry system of the present invention through a single keypad (eg, based on the principle described in FIG. 11). Between duplicating a second keypad (e.g. to provide a key press action corresponding to the correction procedure of the present invention (e.g. to help input (at least) the correct character (e.g. of said word)) Indicates that switching is to be performed. According to one method, if the mode key 12010 is not pressed, by default, the system may be in the “first keypad” mode. This is accomplished by providing a first predetermined interaction process, such as pressing (eg, single) any of the keys 1204, 1206, 1207, 1209 (eg, no coding action), for example. , Which means that it can correspond to the (four) ambiguous keys of the first keypad of the present invention. Corresponding characters / characters are shown above the (four) keys. As described in accordance with the first example and in the different patent applications filed by this inventor, based on the principles of the word prediction data input system of the present invention, an exemplary portion 12014 of the dictionary database of system words is shown. By considering (continuous) one-time pressing of the keys 1206, 1204, 1209, 1209, it corresponds to the pressing key operation (for example, first input information) and has the highest priority. The word “to tend” can be given. If this is not the desired word, then as an example, one of the following correction examples can be considered (among many other correction procedures in the system as described above):
According to one method, by way of example, to enter the word “reins”, at this time the user can predefine the mode key 12010 to put the system into a “second keypad” mode. Can be pressed (and held), and (secondly) pressing (eg, coding action) any of the keys on the keypad (eg, at least the character keys of the telephone type keypad) is the second keypad. Can correspond to the characters / characters assigned to In this example, the character is printed on the lower left side of the keypad key (eg, in this example, the standard distribution of characters on a telephone type keypad). In this example, at this time, the user can press the key 1207 corresponding to the letter “r” (for example, the first character of the word “reins”) (on the second keypad) and the system The pressing action is associated with the character “pqrs”. The first key (1206) of the first input information is a group of characters “frmatz_” related to the pressing action (without pressing (and holding) another (for example, mode) key (for example, without coding) and corresponding key is selected. And a second type of interactive processing with the key 1207 (for example, pressing the key 1207 corresponding to the first character of the word once and pressing the mode key 12010 ( And the only common character / character between the group of characters “pqrs” corresponding to the character “r” is the character “r”. The system can suggest the word “reins” corresponding to the combined first and second (eg, correction) input information.
-According to an example, if the word "thin" is the desired word, the user presses the key 12010 after the word "tend headed" is suggested by the system (eg, based on the first input information) (And hold) (e.g., allow the system to enter "second keypad" mode), and key 1208 can be pressed (e.g., once) (e.g., on the mode key and The pressing operation on the key 1208 corresponds to the character “tuv”). A first key press action (eg, corresponding to the character “frmatz_”) provided through a first type of interaction with the key 1206, and a second type of interaction with the key 1208 (coding interaction) ( For example, the only common character / character between the character “tuv” and the character “tuv” is the character “t”. The word “to tend” is a word that has the highest priority, matching the combined first and second input information. The word has already been proposed to the user. According to one method, the system suggests the word “light” with the next highest priority after the word “to tend” in response to the (combined) first and second information. be able to.
-According to one method, the word "tend headed" is proposed by the system, and after the user enters the correct character through the correction procedure of the present invention as described above, the system responds to the system's dictionary database. If it does not find a word to do, it replaces / corrects only that character in the corresponding location in the proposed word. For example, when the user presses the mode key 12010 and presses the key 1209, the system associates the pressing action with the character “wxyz”. The only common character between the character / character group “frmatz_”) and the character / character group “wxyz” is the character “z”. In this example, there are no words corresponding to the first and second input information. The system can print / suggest a series of characters / words “zend”.

According to one example / method, after a word is suggested by the system through input information provided by the user, the user can press the “Nxt” key 12011 and the system is provided by the user and A word corresponding to the input information can be proposed that the word has the next highest priority.
For example,
-For example, if the word "tend headed" is proposed by the system based on the first input information and then the user presses the key 12011, the system will suggest the word "menu".
-Also, for example, if the user presses the key 12011 after the word "light" has been proposed by the system based on the first input information and the second or additional input information, the system ".

      Obviously, instead of a mode key, other means for switching between the two keypad modes can be considered. Also, obviously, instead of a coding operation, another second predetermined interaction process such as pressing and releasing mode key 12010 is used to put the system into the second keypad mode. Can be done. At this time, pressing any key on the keypad can be associated with pressing a key on the second keypad. Clearly, pressing the mode key 12010 again accordingly can return the system to the first keypad mode. It will be appreciated that other different types of interaction can be considered to put the system into the first or second keypad mode. Obviously, although the data entry system described uses two keypads, additional keypads can be considered. Thus, additional types of interaction can be considered to duplicate the additional keypad.

      According to some embodiments, the data input system of the present invention allows the user to select any (ambiguous or accurate) character / character of the suggested word, and through the correction procedure described above, the correct character Can replace it. This system (if designed) can then take into account the additional / secondary input information, thus necessarily suggesting another word in the dictionary (eg previously described) It can be combined with first (eg, previous) input information provided by the user to enter the desired word. As shown in FIG. 12, the selected character (in this example 12015) can be highlighted on the screen by the system for ease of follow-up / interaction processing. Thus, the system can include a “character selection” means that can allow the user to navigate across the suggested word characters to choose one of them, so that the user can Change (eg, through a second keypad) and optionally / preferably cause the system to suggest another word if any suitable candidate word is in the dictionary database, as described . According to one method, by default, when a user enters a word, the system can automatically select and emphasize the first ambiguous character (eg, 12015) of the suggested word. According to one method, for example, if the user proceeds to a correction procedure and presses the corresponding key on the second keypad, the system associates the pressing action of the correction procedure with the selected character and the user After entering the correct character, the next ambiguous character of the word can be automatically selected (and highlighted) by the system.

      In the standard four directions of navigation means (eg four PC keyboard arrows) for navigating the cursor within text (eg in FIG. 12, they are assigned to different types of interaction with two keys 12018, 12017) In addition, FIG. 12 shows left and right selection keys 1208, 1205 for navigating and selecting characters within a (proposed) word (eg, or any word of text) as described above. It should be noted that the user can (even) select the exact character of the (suggested) word and replace it with another exact character (eg the system was The new input information given through the current correction procedure to enter / exclude the input information corresponding to the previous accurate character given through the correction procedure of Is replaced.

      Obviously, giving a first predetermined interaction with other, perhaps obvious, keys on the keypad (eg other than the four keys above) is the “space” character, “BkSp” function, “return” function , Special symbols and other (preferably commonly used) symbols such as “.”, “,”, Etc., may be entered, some of which 12 (in this example, some of them are printed on the upper right side of the key).

      In the example of FIG. 12, another mode key 12012 can be used to enter additional special symbols that are assigned to different keys on the keypad (in this example, some of them are located on the lower right side of the key). For example, pressing (and holding) the key 12012 and pressing the key 1209 can correspond to the character “@”.

      As noted above, it should be noted that dictionary words can also include any special symbols such as apostrophes (eg, “it's that”) or any number, etc. Thus, in general, a set of combined characters of a language (eg, including letters, numbers, special symbols, etc.) is placed on each key of the first and second keypads (eg, or one keypad). Each of two different predetermined interactions with the key of the key), the character assigned to pressing the key of the first keypad (e.g. optional) and the key of the second keypad (e.g. optional) A character assigned to pressing (e.g., a character assigned to provide a first predetermined interaction with any key on the keypad and a second predetermined interaction with any key on the same keypad) (Character assigned to give) can be distributed so that it has one common character (this is already It has been described).

      According to some embodiments, pressing (eg, and releasing) a mode key without combining with pressing another key is used to input a predetermined character assigned to any of the mode keys. It will be noted that it can be

      Keypad, key arrangement, number of keys, assignment of one set of language characters to each of the first and second set of keys (eg, or second and second types of keys with one set of keys) Functions for each of the interaction processes, such as key type, interaction process type, etc., are shown as examples describing different embodiments of the present invention, as described and shown in this patent application. It is noted that. Obviously, other types of such functions can be considered by those skilled in the art.

      As described above, if the cursor is positioned at a predetermined position for the word, such as at the end of the word / series of characters (eg, preferably in a predetermined manner, after the last character of the word), the correction procedure Note that (eg, pressing action (multiple actions) on the key of the second keypad to correct / change the proposed word) may preferably be possible. This allows the system to suggest the (unwanted) word immediately or later (eg, leave the undesired word as it is and continue to enter more words or reload the corresponding document) , Etc.), for example by repositioning the cursor to the end of the (unwanted) word and correcting it (preferably) through the second keypad as described in this patent application, Words (eg undesired) can be corrected.

      According to one method, the user can place the cursor after any character of the proposed word to change the character by pressing the corresponding key on the second keypad. According to another method, in the middle of input of a word (for example, not complete), the user preferably enters that (for example, the beginning) portion of the word as the user continues to input the remaining characters of the desired word. The correction procedure can be followed to correct the currently proposed word / sequence of characters so that does not change on the screen.

      It should be noted that in this patent application “key” and “predetermined type of interaction with key” are used to demonstrate different implementations and methods as described. Obviously, any (predetermined) input means (e.g. providing first and second groups of input signals) and any (predetermined / different) input signals provided through said input means providing input signals That (predetermined) type of interaction can be used for the same purpose. For example, instead of separately assigning a set of language characters to the keys of the first keypad, the characters may be in a first operation, such as a single press on the key using the keys of the keypad. It can be assigned to a certain type of interaction. Also, instead of assigning different sets of language characters separately to the keys on the second keypad, the characters press the double press action, mode or function key on / by the keys on the first keypad. Can be assigned to a second predetermined type of interaction, such as holding and pressing once, etc. Obviously, based on the principles of the data entry system of the present invention as described above, the characters assigned to the first type of interaction with any of the keys on the keypad and the key of the key on the keypad. There may be character distribution / assignment for the first and second types of interaction with the key so that characters assigned to two types of interaction have at most one common character.

      FIG. 13 is a flow diagram of the operation of a data entry system, according to an illustrative embodiment of the invention. System 828 remains in a wait state (828) where it waits for key activation. When the first set of keys is activated for a short period of time (830), the next cursor position is associated with all the characters corresponding to the activated first set of keys (832). The processor of the data entry system then optionally selects and displays (834) the best match word for the current entry. Optionally, the displayed word is selected by selecting the most popular word that matches the available information on the current word.

      When the first set of keys is activated for a period longer than the predetermined length (836), the processor moves to a special state where the second key is given a special symbol interpretation (838). Optionally, this predetermined length is a substantially longer duration than is normally used by a user entering data, so that only intentional long activation of the key is interpreted as a state change. In some embodiments of the invention, the processor remains in a special state until the key is released. Alternatively, the processor remains in a special state until a different state key is activated. Optionally, instead of this, one of the first keys is associated with the transition to the normal state.

      Special conditions are provided with numbers, function keys, foreign alphabets, mathematical symbols (eg>, <=, +) and / or standard keyboards and / or provided by document processing software in the well-known prior art Given for other groups of symbols.

      When the second key is activated (840), the processor optionally determines (842) whether it is currently in a special state. If the processor is in a special state (842), the next word position is associated with the symbol corresponding to the key operating in the special state (844). In some embodiments of the invention, the processor then reselects (834) words to be displayed. Note, however, that the same state can correspond to symbols that are not included in the words of the processor's dictionary, and therefore their combinations for the current word do not result in a well-known dictionary word. is there. In such a case, the display can only be updated for the location application currently updated by the symbol. As an alternative or in addition, the fact that the position of the recently added symbol does not contain a character is used in selecting the updated best guess.

      When the second key is activated (840) If the processor is not in a special state (842), the processor includes a position where the current word corresponds ambiguously to multiple characters and has not been disambiguated Whether or not (846) is determined optionally. If there is a position in this word that has not been disambiguated of this kind (846), the character corresponding to the second key defines the first position in the word that has not yet been disambiguated. Used in (848). In some embodiments of the invention, each pair of first and second keys has only a single character in common so that unambiguous is tied to a particular character. Alternatively, the first and second key pairs can have a plurality of characters in common, for example up to two or three characters in common. This option allows to reduce the number of characters in the first and / or second set of keys.

      If no unambiguous position exists in the current word (846), the next position in the current word is assigned to the number corresponding to the pressed second key (850). Alternatively, associate with the second key for the case where there is no position in the current word that any other set of symbols, such as those used in one of the special states, has not been disambiguated Can be done. As a further alternative, when there is no unambiguous position in the current word, the next cursor position is associated with all characters corresponding to the second set of keys to be activated. Whether this alternative allows the user to start writing with the first key and correct the ambiguity with the second key, or write with the second key when correcting the ambiguity with the first key Can be selected dynamically.

      It should be noted that in accordance with a preferred principle / embodiment of the present invention, any key of the character key of the first keypad and any key of the character key of the second keypad is at most 1. A full set of language characters are separately assigned to a few (eg, four) keys on the first keypad so that they have two common characters, and another same full set of same language characters Minor modifications / variations may, however, be considered / given to this principle by those skilled in the art, although they are assigned separately to a few keys of the two keypads (e.g. to eight telephone type keys). ,That's what it means. For example, one (or more) one key (eg, ambiguous) on a first keypad and one (eg, ambiguous) key (eg, just described above) on a second keypad (for some reason) Can have multiple common characters (although this may increase ambiguity and slow down the recognition ability of systems that require more user input).

      The input system of embodiments of the present invention can be used by virtually any electronic device and / or computerized device, such as a mobile phone, GPS device, remote control, portable device, television receiver, and music player. Can be This input system is particularly useful for small sized and / or portable devices that are inconvenient for placing the entire keyboard. In addition, these input devices can be used for instruments that are not primarily intended for data entry, such as washing machines, refrigerators, etc., which conventionally do not include a large keyboard.

      Thus, while applied to its alternative embodiments, the basic novel features of the present invention have been described and pointed out with the drawings, and various omissions and substitutions in the form and details of the disclosed invention have been pointed out. It will be understood that modifications can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention. Accordingly, its purpose is to be limited only as suggested by the scope of the claims appended hereto. It should be understood that the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, but are merely conceptual in nature. For example, although the keys are named and shown as input means in this patent application, obviously other input means such as sensors and finger caps for use with the user's fingers, gloves may be used. it can. Further, any type of input signal, such as any predetermined interaction, such as sliding motion, different duration operation and / or different pressure levels, is disclosed herein in its entirety. A first set and / or one of those described in Patent Literature 7, Patent Literature 8, Patent Literature 9, Patent Literature 10, Patent Literature 11, and Patent Literature 12, Can be used for a second set of keys. In addition, any of the functions described in these patent documents can be added to any of the embodiments described above.

      Note that in many paragraphs, first and second keypads have been defined for use with the data entry system of the present invention. However, it will be appreciated that the system can alternatively use the first and second groups of (different) input signals for the same purpose.

100 First keypad 101-104 Key 108 Excerpt from database 1010 Second keypad 1012-1019 Key 201-206 Key 207 Multi-directional key 208 Exemplary portion of dictionary database 2001 Telephone type keypad 2014, 2015, 2017 key 300 second keypad 301 key 305, 306 character 310 second keypad 311 key 312 shift key 401, 402 part 407, 408 part 417, 418 second keypad 500 keypad 507 “mode” key 600 key Pad 601-604 Key 6012, 6013, 6014, 6017, 6018 Key 6200 Device 6201-6206 Key 6209 On-screen keypad 6213 Apostrophe key 6240 Key layout 6 41-6246 box 6228 exemplary dictionary portion 707, 708 split on-screen key 800, 811, 812 keypad 801-804 key 808, 809 key 808 first keypad 900 second keypad 901-906 key 9011 , 9012 key 1000, 1100 keypad 1101-1109 key 11010, 11011, 11012 key 1200 keypad 1204, 1206, 1207, 1208, 1209 key 1208, 1205 selection key 12010, 12012 mode key 12011 “Nxt” key 12014 dictionary database Illustrative part 12015 Example 12018, 12017 Key

Claims (39)

A computerized device,
A first input interface adapted to identify a plurality of different first user input signals;
A second input interface adapted to identify a plurality of second user input signals;
Each of at least one of the second plurality of symbols and the second input signal is ambiguously associated with each of at least one of the first plurality of symbols and the first input signal. A processor configured to obscure the operation of
The processor associates one of the first input signals and each of the second plurality of symbols such that the second plurality of symbols corresponds to a plurality of the first input signals. Equipment.       The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor corresponds to each of a plurality of symbols and the second input signal.       The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the processor corresponds to each of a plurality of symbols and the first input signal.       The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor considers the symbols and the first input signal such that the first input signal is associated with all the characters of the natural language alphabet. A device characterized by correspondingly.       5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the processor considers the symbols and the second input signal such that the second input signal is associated with all the letters of the alphabet, taken together. Corresponding device.       5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the processor corresponds a single first input signal to each letter of the alphabet.       7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the processor corresponds to a single second input signal and each letter of the alphabet.       The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to infer a word intended by a user based on a series of first input signals.       The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the processor is configured to update its word guess in response to one or more of the second input signals.       9. The apparatus of claim 8, comprising a memory for storing a dictionary of words, wherein the processor is configured to use the dictionary in inferring the intended word. Device to do.       12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the dictionary includes an index of popularity of words in the dictionary, and the processor uses the popularity index when inferring the intended word. A device characterized by comprising the following.       The apparatus of claim 1, wherein one of the first input signals and one of the second input signals are realized by actuation of the same physical key in different processor operating states. Equipment.       The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to apply a second input signal from a same cursor position to a current word position different from the first input signal in at least some cases. A device characterized by that.       14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the processor is configured to add a second input signal from the same cursor position to a current word position that is different from the first input signal, the second input signal. Is also interpreted to be associated with a symbol corresponding to the first input signal.       2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor associates a second input signal with a first position of the current word that was not associated by a second key in the current handling of the word. A device characterized by comprising.       The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to associate a second input signal with a character immediately preceding a current cursor position managed by the processor.       The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to provide the first input signal when the second input signal is provided during insertion of a word using the first input signal. An apparatus configured to associate a character not corresponding to any of the above and a second input signal.       2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first and second input interfaces are realized by a single hardware unit.       The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first input interface is selected from the group comprising a physical keypad and a touch screen and a virtual keypad.       The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the second input interface is selected from the group comprising a physical keypad and a touch screen and a virtual keypad.       2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first input interface comprises a plurality of first keys, and the second input interface comprises a plurality of second keys, and the processor , When the first key is pressed longer than a predetermined duration, it is configured to be associated with at least one of the first keys as a state selection key of one or more of the second keys. Features device.       23. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the processor displays a corresponding symbol of the second key in the selected state when the first key is pressed for longer than a predetermined duration. An apparatus characterized by being configured as follows.       2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first input interface comprises a plurality of first keys that do not have their corresponding symbols presented on them.       24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the second input interface comprises a plurality of keys having their corresponding symbols presented therein.       24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the processor selectively displays the corresponding symbol of the first set of keys on a screen when an input using the first key is expected. An apparatus characterized by being configured to display.       2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the processor and symbols in a manner such that each pair of first and second input signals has at most one symbol in common. An apparatus configured to correlate input signals.       28. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the processor is configured to associate a symbol with the input signal in such a manner that each pair of first and second input signals has a symbol in common. A device characterized by that.       The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first input interface supports no more than six different input signals used to insert symbols.       The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the second interface supports no more than 10 different input signals. A method for assigning characters to keys on a keyboard comprising the following steps:
Providing a dictionary that lists the words in alphabetical order by corresponding popularity of word usage;
Preparing a keyboard with fewer keys than alphabetic characters;
Assigning the alphabetic character to the key actuation of the keyboard such that at least one key actuation is unambiguously associated with a plurality of characters;
The assigning step determines a probability that the sequence of key operations corresponding to a word in the dictionary is associated with the word by a processor that selects the word from the dictionary corresponding to the sequence of key operations having the highest probability. A method characterized in that it is performed in a manner that attempts to improve.       31. The method of claim 30, wherein assigning the alphabetic character to the key actuation includes assigning in a manner that assigns a character having a similar sound to a different key. A computerized device,
Multiple data entry keys,
When operating in the first method, associated with at least one of the keys to represent one or more symbols, and when operated in the second method, the at least one of the keys as a status selection key. And a processor configured to be associated with one.       33. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the processor is associated with at least one of the keys to represent one or more symbols when activated for a period of time less than a predetermined time, and An apparatus configured to associate with the at least one of the keys as a state selection key when activated for longer than a predetermined time. A method for managing an input receiving device including a plurality of keys and screens, comprising:
Receiving user input through the key;
Determining the state of the input in response to the previously activated key;
If it is determined that the device is in a first state, display at least some symbol assignments of the key on the screen, but if it is determined that the device is in a second state, Not displaying said symbol assignment.       36. The method of claim 35, wherein displaying the symbol assignment comprises displaying in a manner that is moved by a cursor on the screen. A device for receiving an input signal,
A first input interface including a plurality of keys associated with a particular alphabetic character;
A second input interface adapted to identify a plurality of second user input signals associated with the letters of the particular alphabet;
Interpreting the operation of the key of the first input interface to correspond to a group of one or more characters of the specific alphabet, respectively, and a group of one or more characters of the specific alphabet And a processor configured to interpret the plurality of second user input signals to respectively correspond to
The apparatus, wherein the second input interface is located between the keys of the first input interface.       37. The apparatus of claim 36, wherein the second input interface comprises a plurality of keys selected from the group comprising physical keys, touch sensitive pads and virtual on-screen keys. Device to do.       37. The apparatus of claim 36, wherein the first input interface comprises up to six keys.       37. The apparatus of claim 36, wherein a distance from one of the first keys to the second input interface is greater than a radius of the second input interface.

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